3:41 Hope we mean it when we sing. All that thrills my soul is Jesus. He is more than life to me. The fairest of 10,000. In my blessed Lord I see. All [singing and music] that thrills my soul is Jesus. He [music] 4:02 is more [singing] than life to me and [singing] the fairest of 10,000 [music] in [singing and music] my blessed Lord I see. Who can cure the heart 4:24 [music and singing] like Jesus by his presence all divine, true and tender, pure and precious. [music and singing] Oh, how blessed to call him [music] 4:41 mine. All that thrills my soul [music and singing] is Jesus. He is [music and singing] more than life to me and the fairest of 10,000 [singing] [music] 5:00 in my blessed Lord I see the sing love of Christ so freely [music] given grace [singing] of God beyond degree. [music] Mercy [singing] 5:18 higher than the heaven, [music] deeper than [singing] the deepest sea. [music] All together. All [singing] that thrills my soul is Jesus. He [music] 5:34 is more [singing] than like to me and the fairest [music and singing] of 10,000 in my blessed [singing] Lord I see. Sister sing. What [music] 5:51 a wonderful redemption. [singing] Never can I want alone. [music and singing] How my s your red light [music] can be [singing] whiter than the snow. 6:10 Everybody all [singing] that thrills [music] my soul is Jesus. He [singing] is more than light to me. >> [music and singing] >> And the fairest of all 10,000 in [singing] my [music] blessed Lord I 6:31 see the voices [singing] every need [music] is hand supplying [chanting] every [singing] good in him I see on [singing and chanting] his strength divine relying he [singing] is All they all are to me. 6:57 All [music and singing] that fills my soul is Jesus. He is more than life [music and singing] to me. and the [music] fairest of 10,000 [singing] in my blessed [singing] Lord I see 7:19 by the crystal flowing [singing and music] river with the ransom I will sing and forever [music and singing] and forever praise [singing] and glory glorify the 7:39 [music] king. All [singing] that thrills my soul is Jesus. He [music and singing] is more than life to me. And the fairest [music and singing] of 10,000 in my [music and singing] blessed Lord I 8:01 see. >> Please be seated brothers and sisters. [music] >> [music] >> Glory, [singing] glory in the [music] highest. Glory to the Almighty. [singing] 8:20 Glory to the Lamb of God. Glory [music and singing] to the living God. Glory, glory to [music and singing] the Lamb from the beginning. Glory, [music and singing] glory in the highest. Glory to the [music and singing] Almighty. 8:40 Glory to the Lamb of God. Glory to the living [singing] God. [music] Glory to [singing] the Lamb. [music] I sing. Glory, glory, glory, [music] 8:59 glory, glory, [singing] glory to the lamb. I [singing] give [music] glory, glory, glory, [singing] glory, [music] glory, 9:16 glory to the lamb. I [music and singing] give gloryy to the lamb. Sing 9:41 sing [music and singing] a song of celebration. Lift up a shout [singing] of praise [music] for the bridegroom will come. The glorious [music and singing] one. And [music and singing] oh, 10:03 we will look on [music] his face. We will go [music] to a [singing] much better place. Dance [music and singing] with all your 10:21 might. Lift up your hands and clap [music and singing] for joy. For the time's drawing near when he will [singing and music] appear and oh [music] we will [singing] stand by his side. 10:46 us strong. [singing and music] Your smoke is bright. We [music and singing] will dance on the streets that are golden. The glor is bright [singing and music] and the great 11:03 son of man. From every tongue and tribe and nation will join [music and singing] in the song of the lamb. Sing [singing and music] aloud for the 11:21 time of rejoicing is aloud for the time [music and singing] of rejoicing. >> Raise King our groom is soon [music and singing] to appear. King our groom is soon to [singing and music] 11:37 wedding feast to come is now near ahead. to come [music] is now. >> Lift up your voice. [singing] Proclaim the coming lamb. [music] We [singing] will dance on the streets 11:57 that [music] are golden. The glor [singing] is bright and the great son of man. From every [singing] tongue [music] and tribe and nation will join in the song of [music] the lamb. Thank [music] you for the cross, 12:41 Lord. Thank you [music] for the price [singing] you paid, [music] bearing [singing] all my sin and shame. In love, you [singing and music] came 13:00 and gave amazing [singing] grace. Thank you for [music and singing] this love, Lord. Thank you for [music] your hands. 13:19 Wash me [music] in your [singing] cleansing flow. Now all I know your [music] forgiveness and embrace. [music] Worthy is the lamb. [singing] 13:39 [music] Seated on [singing] the throne. [music] crown [singing] you now with [music] many grounds. You reign victorious [music] 13:57 [singing] high and lifted [music] up. Jesus, son [singing and music] of God. The father's [music and singing] will 14:15 love and crucified. Worthy is the lamb. [music] Worthy [singing] is the lamb. Thank you for the cross, 14:38 [music and singing] Lord. Thank [music] you for the price [singing] you pay. Wearing all my [music and singing] sin and shame. In love, you came 14:57 and gave amazing grace. [music] Thank you for this love, Lord. [singing] Thank you for your me. [music and singing] Wash me in your [music and singing] 15:17 cleansing flow. How long I know your forgiveness [singing] [music] and praise. Worthy [singing] is the lamb. See [singing and music] 15:37 it on the throne. We crown [singing] you now with [music] many crowns. [singing] You reign victorious. [music] I am lifted [music] 15:58 [singing] up. Jesus, [music] son of God, the father's [music and singing] beloved crucified. Worthy [singing] is the lamb. 16:19 [music] Worthy [singing] is the lamb. Worthy [singing and music] is the lamb. Splender [singing and music] 16:40 of the king [music] clothe [singing] in mesty. [music] Let [singing] all the earth rejoice. All the earth rejoice. [music] He wraps [singing] 17:00 himself in light. [music] Darkness [singing] strives to light [music] and trembles at his voice and trembles [music and singing] at his voice. 17:18 How great is our God. [singing and music] Sing with me, how great is our God. [music and singing] And all will see how great, how great [music] is our [singing] God. 17:42 Age to [music] ages, age [singing] to age. He stands. [music] Time is in his hand. Beginning and the [music and singing] end. 17:58 Beginning and the end. The God [music and singing] of three in one. [music] by [singing] the spirit son. The lion and the lamb. [music] 18:17 The lion and [singing] the lamb. [music] How great is our [singing] love. Sing with me. How great [music] is our [singing] will see. How great, 18:37 how great [music] is [singing] our God name above all. [music] You're the name [singing] above all. [music] You are [singing] worthy of all 18:55 praise. And my heart [music and singing] will sing, how great is our [music and singing] God. Name above all names. You're the [singing and music] name 19:12 above all names. You [singing] are worthy of all praise. And my [music and singing] heart will sing, how great is our [singing] God. 19:31 [music] How great, how great [music and singing] is our God. Sing [singing] with me. How [music] great is our God. [singing] Oh, will see how great, [music] 19:51 how great [singing] is our God. [singing] Grace is the Lord and most worthy of praise 20:13 in [music] the city [singing] of our God, the holy place, [music] the joy [singing] of the Oh, [music] [music] great [singing] 20:33 [music] is the Lord in whom we have [singing] the victory. [music] He [singing] uses against the enemy. [music] We [singing] bow down on our [music] 20:52 knees. [music] And Lord, [singing] we want to lift your name on high. And [music] Lord, [singing] we want to thank you for the works you've done in 21:11 our lives. And Lord, we trust in [singing and music] your unfailing love. For [music] you alone [singing] are God eternal throughout earth [music] and heaven above. Praise [music] 21:36 is the Lord [singing] and most worthy of praise in the [music and singing] city of our God, the holy place, the [music] joy [singing] of the Lord. [music] 22:00 Praise >> [music] >> is the Lord in whom we have the victory. He a [music] us. [singing] We bow [singing] 22:17 down on [music] our knees. Lord, we [music and singing] want to lift your name, oh God. And Lord, [singing] we want to thank you [music] 22:35 for the words you've done in our lives. And Lord, we [music and singing] trust in your unfailing love. For you alone [singing] are God [music] eternal throughout earth and heaven above. [singing] Let's all stand up and [music] sing. 23:02 Wonderful, merciful savior, [music] wonderful, [music] merciful [singing] 23:19 savior, precious [music] redeemer and friend. Who [singing and music] would have thought that a lamb could rescue [singing and music] the souls of men? 23:38 Oh, you rescue [music] the souls of men. Counselor, [singing] comforter, keeper, [music] spirit [singing] we long to embrace. 23:59 You [singing and music] offer hope when our hearts hopelessly [music and singing] lost away. Oh, we [music] hopelessly lost away. You [singing and music] are the one that 24:18 we praise. You are the [music and singing] one we adore. You give [music and singing] the healing and grace our hearts always [singing] hunger for. 24:35 Oh our hearts always [music] hunger for. Almighty [music and singing] and fine father, faithfully [music and singing] loving your own. 24:55 Here in [singing and music] our weakness, you find us falling [singing and music] before your throne. Oh, we're falling before your throne. >> [music] >> You are the one that [singing] we 25:13 praise. You are the one we [music] adore. You give [singing] the healing and [music] grace of hearts always hunger for. 25:30 Oh our hearts always hunger for the one that we praise. >> [music] >> You are [singing] the one that we praise. You are [singing] the one we adore. 25:47 You give the healing and grace [singing] our hearts always hunger for. [music] Oh, our [singing] hearts always hunger for. As we remain standing, shall we bow 26:31 heads in prayer? Let's quieten our spirits. 27:06 Come before him with thankful hearts. Hearts cleansed of all offense and sin that easily entangles us. I would like to read a few verses from a 27:42 psalm. Let God arise. Let his enemies be scattered. And let those who hate him flee before him. He is the father of the fatherless and a 28:01 judge for the widows. Is God in his holy habitation. God makes a home for the lonely. He leads out the prisoners into prosperity. Only the rebellious dwell in a parched 28:20 land. The chariots of God are myriads. Thousands upon thousands. Thou has ascended on high, and thou has led captive thy captives. 28:39 Thou hast received gifts among men, even among the rebellious also, that the Lord God may dwell there. Blessed be the Lord who daily bears our burdens, the God who is our salvation. 28:57 God is to us a God of deliverances and to God the Lord belong escapes from death. Your God has commanded your strength and God himself gives strength 29:19 and power to the people. Blessed be God. Our gracious heavenly father, 29:39 we come to you with thankful hearts, with praise, gratitude, and adoration for all that you have done for us, Lord Jesus. You said you didn't come for the 29:58 righteous, but you came to seek and to save those who were lost. And we were among them. Lord, when when we were trying to avoid you and run away from 30:16 you and were doing things that were contrary to your will, Lord, at you came after us. You sought us and you had mercy upon us 30:33 and washed us and cleansed us, brought us to a place of repentance and brokenness and gave us your spirit whereby we call you our father. Thank you Lord for such immense love that you have showered upon us. 30:52 Sinners saved by grace through faith. We want to bless you. We want to worship you Lord together as your people. Let's raise our voices 31:10 and praise him with all our heart, mind, soul and strength. Let us love him and express our love towards him. Thank you Lord. Thank you that you have not left us as orphans. You have come after us 31:28 Lord Jesus. You promise that you will take care of us. You'll be with us even till the end of the ages. Not a hair on our head will perish without your permission. Lord, we thank you that we are more valuable to you than many sparrows. 31:46 We bless you, Lord. You alone are worthy. You alone are worthy to be praised, glorified, honored, and exalted. We bow down before your holy throne. in our spirits, Lord. We worship your 32:05 majesty. We bless you even this morning, Lord. As we come before your throne, we want to hear what you have to speak to your church. We pray that you will 32:23 unfold your word. Give us light and understanding. Open our ears that we may hear what you had to speak to us. Lord Jesus, anoint and bless the brothers who minister your word. Pray that you will fill them with the Holy Spirit. And Lord, we pray that 32:42 you will give us the word that we all need that no one will go back empty from here. Help us Lord. We want to hear you Lord. take your rightful place in our 32:59 midst and be thou glorified. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. Please take your seats. Let's look at our memory verses. Last 33:16 week we had a promise from Mark 9:23. Mark chapter 9 verse 23. All things are possible to the one who believes. 33:35 The Bible says all things are possible with God. Here it says all things are possible to the one who believes. So let us think about that. And today we have a command this week 33:54 from Galatians 5 26. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another. Galatians 5:26. 34:14 Let's say that again. Galatians 5:26. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another. Yeah. This morning we will hear God's 34:33 word from brother Paul Williams and after that we sing a song and then we will hear John Pereira Paul. I want to share a few thoughts on 35:08 the one incident about our Lord Jesus that is mentioned about his childhood. We read about that in uh Luke chapter 2. Luke chapter 2. We are familiar with this passage. 35:27 Chapter 2 41-52. Luke 2:es 41-52. Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover. So they went there. It was not just a 35:49 family tradition or an annual vacation. The law of Moses required that all the families visit Jerusalem during the Passover time. And they were not allowed to sacrifice the Passover in any of the towns or cities which the Lord had given them. 36:09 They were only required to sacrifice it in Jerusalem because that is where the Lord has appointed that this should happen. He established his name in Jerusalem. So uh we know that Jesus was born in 36:27 Bethlehem and he grew up in Nazareth and neither of these towns were suitable for the sacrifice of the Passover. Only in Jerusalem they could sacrifice it. Today we don't have to go on a pilgrimage to any town or city to observe any feast. We know that Jesus 36:46 Christ is our Passover. He has been sacrificed once for all and the only feast we celebrate is the breaking of bread and we do it along with the brothers and sisters we are joined with. In the next verse we read that when he 37:02 became 12 they went up there according to the custom of the feast. So we don't know if Jesus also went in in the previous years but we know for sure that when he was 12 he went there 37:20 and the age 12 is a very significant uh year in the life of a Jewish male because from the age of 13 onwards all Jewish males were responsible for their own conduct and they were responsible for keeping the law and all the customs of the 37:40 So the age of 12 was the last or the final year in this phase of life for Jesus and for all other Jewish males. And we read in verse 43, and as they were returning after spending the full number of days 37:59 and they had to spend about 8 days in Jerusalem, one day is for Passover and the other seven days for the feast of unleavened bread. So they spent about 8 days there and they were returning and we read that the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem and 38:16 his parents were unaware of it. This is the only place in the gospels we read about the boy Jesus. So there was a time when Jesus was a boy. We have all seen 12 year old boys. Think 38:35 of a 12-year-old boy, you know, and Jesus was a boy, a 12-year-old boy at that time. He was just like a 12-year-old boy. So, all children and especially uh boys can take encouragement from the fact that Jesus was just like you at one 38:54 point of time and he had all the natural desires and inclinations that boys have. And the boys also can be challenged by the fact the kind of maturity that Jesus showed at the age of 12. And we read that the boy Jesus stayed 39:13 behind in Jerusalem. That means he did not return with his parents. Now we know that all boys like to stay behind in a place which they like. And usually they bargain with their parents to stay a little longer in the place which they like. And we see that 39:31 here on Sundays also children want to stay a little longer and they ask their parents if they can stay a little longer. But we don't read that anything like that happened here. Jesus just stayed behind and uh his parents were unaware of it. 39:47 That means this was something Jesus did consciously. It's not that he just got lost in the crowd and his parents did not know it. Verse 44 we read that and supposeded him to be in the caravan and went a day's journey. They suppose Jesus was in the group of 40:07 people they were traveling with. And the reason why they suppose this is because Jesus never did anything like this before. If Jesus was the kind of boy who frequently got lost or he didn't follow his parents around, they would have 40:23 ensured that he was with them before they moved on. And we read that they began looking for him among their relatives and acquaintances in verse 44. And the natural tendency of children we know is that they stay with either the 40:42 people they know or the relatives the people they are familiar with. And they looked for them uh looked for him but they did not find him. And finally verse 45 it says when they did not find him they returned to Jerusalem looking for him. 41:01 And again we see that they did not go straight to the temple. They looked for him in other places. That means maybe the places where boys can be found, boys can be attracted to. That is where they looked for him first. And verse 46 says 41:16 that then after 3 days they found him in the temple sitting in the midst of teachers both listening to them and asking them questions. So after 3 days of searching in different places they finally went to 41:32 the temple and they found him there. And here there are three things mentioned about Jesus. And it is good for us children even grown-ups to follow Jesus in these three areas. The first thing that is mentioned is that he was sitting in the midst of 41:51 teachers. So long before Jesus became a teacher and sat and taught people around him, he sat in the midst of teachers. That means he surrounded himself with teachers. He wanted to listen to them. So before we can teach others, we have to be first 42:10 taught ourselves and we have to maintain this teachable attitude all our lives. at any time or at any age. We should never reach an age in which we say that I no longer need to be taught. I don't have to learn anything. So that is one 42:29 thing we can learn from Jesus. The second thing it says that he was a listen. He was listening to them. Jesus was a very good listener. We know that we have that in our homes. He's the silent listener to every conversation. So Jesus was listening to 42:46 them. We know that Jesus listened to his father every day. Isaiah 50:4. Even though he listened to his father every day as the son of God, he did not assume that he did not have to listen to anyone else. 43:05 Sometimes people can have this attitude that because I listen to God, I don't have to listen to anyone else or I will listen to God alone. But Jesus, the boy Jesus did not have such an attitude. He listened to the teachers. He heard what they had to say. 43:24 And remember that these teachers preached the right doctrine because later Jesus told his disciples, whatever they tell you to do, do. So he was not listening to false teachers, he was listening to good teachers. So it is 43:38 good for us to listen to good teachers. And the third thing we read is that he asked them questions. He asked them questions. He was not asking questions just to test their knowledge. But he genuinely wanted to 43:56 know their opinion about different matters in the Old Testament, different passages. So we have to remember that Jesus learned just like anyone else. He did not come down from heaven with all the knowledge and understanding. 44:11 Now while Jesus listened to all these teachers, his main teacher was the Holy Spirit. See all these teachers studied the law using their minds. But Jesus did not study the word of God using his mind. He mind alone. He used the revelation of 44:30 the Holy Spirit. He got revelation from the Holy Spirit. And that is why he was better than all these teachers. There is a beautiful verse in Psalm 119. Can just look at that verse. Psalm 119 and verse 99. 44:48 Easy to remember. 1199. It says here, I have more insight than all my teachers for your testimonies are my meditation. So this verse definitely applied to 45:07 Jesus. He had more insight on the word of God, on the law of God than all his teachers. Because Jesus meditated on the scriptures not just to gain knowledge or to have the ability to teach others but 45:25 to apply them in his own life because he first wanted to do and only then teach. So that is why he studied the scriptures. And coming back to this passage, we see that in verse 47, Luke 2:47, "And all who heard him were amazed at his 45:45 understanding and answers." So we may think, where did Jesus get all this knowledge from? He was not born with it and he did not obtain it from heaven miraculously. Jesus had to learn everything in life just as we learn. 46:04 And he obtained this knowledge by paying careful attention to the scripture which was taught in the synagogues which was read in the synagogues. See in the Jewish synagogues they had a a plan in by which they covered the 46:20 entire law of Moses in one year and they also went through some important writings of the prophets in one year. So Jesus was paying careful attention and he also went on certain weekdays to hear the passages of scripture. 46:37 So from this we understand that we can learn much by paying careful attention to what we hear in the church in Sunday meeting or in the youth meetings or Sunday school or even the Wednesday meetings. So it is important for us to pay 46:54 attention and not be distracted. See in the book of proverbs paying attention is mentioned eight times. It is emphasized eight times. The son is said pay attention to the words of your father. Pay attention to the words of your mother. 47:11 Pay attention to the words of wisdom. We'll just look at one verse. Proverbs chapter 16. Proverbs chapter 16 and verse 20. Proverbs 16:20. 47:30 He who gives attention to the word will find good. And blessed is he who trusts in the Lord. He who gives attention to the word, the word of God will find good. Most of us seek what is good for ourselves and for our families. 47:50 And the way to find what we are seeking for is to pay attention to the word to find good. So the one who pays attention to the word of God will find good. He will find God's good promises and he will find 48:07 commands to keep him from sin to keep him from going astray. So that is the reason we have to pay attention to the word of God and memorize it as much as possible. And coming back to the passage verse 48 48:24 it says that when they the parents saw him they were astonished. His mother said to him son why have you treated us this way? Behold your father and I have been anxiously looking for you. 48:42 So when Joseph and Mary saw Jesus, they were astonished because he was found in the temple and not in the usual places can be found. He was not found spending time with other 12-year-old boys and he was doing completely something unexpected of a 49:00 12-year-old boy. And Mary says this, "Son, why have you treated us this way?" So when we look at these words of Mary, we can sense that she was unhappy with Jesus and she was sort of reproaching 49:17 him. He was blaming him because of all the trouble they had to take, the anxiety they had experienced. So this is a common question that we find in family relationships and other relationships. People ask why have you treated us this 49:34 way or why have you treated me this way? and how can you treat me this way? And sometimes it is very serious. It's not like a mother asking her child. They get quite upset because we they think that we should have treated them better. 49:51 So when we hear such words, we may feel guilty and sometimes maybe it is their intention to make us feel guilty. But on our part, we have to be careful to not use our words in a way to blame 50:09 people or make them feel guilty. So that's what we read here. When Mary said these words, we find the reply of Jesus. Jesus did not feel guilty at all when Mary said this. Why have you treated us this way? He did not 50:26 apologize for his actions because he knew why he stayed back. He did not stay back because of his own interests. He stayed back for the interests of his heavenly father. Now when we look at this incident, we may think who should have watched out 50:44 for whom? Who is the older person here? Jesus was just a 12-year-old boy and Joseph and Mary were in their 30s. Who should have ensured that Jesus was with them? It was the parents, but they didn't. So Jesus should have been the one 51:03 reproaching them. He should have been the one saying how can you leave me and go in this crowd. But he didn't say that. So we should be careful that when we are tempted when people blame us for something we want to blame them back. 51:18 But Jesus did not respond that way. So we can learn much from how Jesus responded in this situation. See what it says in verse 49. And he said to them, "Why is it that you are looking for me? Did you not know that I had to be in my 51:36 father's house?" So Jesus is answering Mary's question with a question of his own. And that was one of Jesus' favorite uh methods of answering questions. And he did that not just with the Pharisees and scribes, even with his own 51:56 mother. Sometimes he did that. And he says that why is it that you are looking for me? And u when we read this whole interaction we know that Jesus was already able to be become a preacher and a teacher even at 52:15 the age of 12. So he he had all the abilities. He had the knowledge. He knew how to answer questions. But Jesus waited 18 more years before he started preaching and teaching because first Jesus wanted to practice 52:33 and only then preach. He wanted to do and only then teach. So that was Jesus attitude. And then when we look at the questions of Jesus, he was asking the motive behind asking these questions 52:51 is Mary you knew everything about me. How I was born, how the angel met you and even after knowing all this, why did you look at look for me in different places? Did you know that I had to be in my father's house or where 53:08 else can I be except in my father's house? What else can I do except take care of my father's interests? So that was the attitude of Jesus. And Mary said, "Your father and I have been anxious looking for you." That 53:26 means she was referring to Joseph. And Jesus replied, "My fathers, my father's house." That means he was saying, "My heavenly father." He was referring to God. So Jesus was saying that I know that my father is not Joseph but God. 53:45 So when we consider this passage we see an important difference between the parents of Jesus and Jesus. See Joseph and Mary went to Jerusalem because the law of Moses required it and they offered the sacrifices because the 54:02 law of Moses required it. And they spent some days in Jerusalem again because the law required it. And after finishing everything the law required them to do, they returned. And if you look at the previous verses in this chapter, that is what we find 54:19 about them. Let's look at a couple of verses in verse 23. Luke chapter 23. This is what they did. Verse 22, the last part. They brought him up to Jerusalem to present him as it is written in the law of the Lord. So they 54:37 did according to the law of the Lord. Verse 24 it says according to what was said in the law of the Lord they offered a sacrifice. In verse 27 again they said it the last part says to carry out for him the custom of the law. And in again 54:55 in verse 39 it says when they had performed everything according to the law of the lord. So that is what the parents did everything what the law required and we can't blame them for that. That is what that is what was expected of them and 55:12 that is what they were content to do. But that was not the case with Jesus. See for Jesus it was not just about fulfilling the law. It was much more than that. It was about pleasing his father and it was about his father's house and 55:30 his father's interests. And that is the reason Jesus was not so eager to go back to Nazareth as his parents were. And he wanted to not to go to the house of his foster father but the house of his heavenly father. He wanted to remain 55:48 there. In verse 50, we read that they did not understand the statement which he had made to them. It may surprise us that they could not understand this simple statement because when the angel met Mary before 56:06 the birth of Jesus, the angel told Mary that the holy child in you shall be called the son of God. So Mary knew all this. She treasured all this but still she could not understand what Jesus said. And Jesus knew that they did not 56:24 understand him. And he also knew in the future they probably would not understand him. But we read that in verse 51 he went down with them and came to Nazareth. So this is the important part in this 56:41 whole passage. I believe verse 51. and he went down with them and came to Nazareth. So leaving Jerusalem, leaving the temple, leaving the teachers, Jesus went down with them and came to Nazareth. 57:00 Now in Jesus position, we might be tempted to think like this. I have so much knowledge of the Bible. What will happen to all this knowledge if I go down to Nazareth? In Nazareth, people are not interested in the Bible and there are no scholars 57:15 with whom I can discuss things. We would have been tempted to think like that. But Jesus did not think that way. He went down with them and came to Nazareth. So Jesus, the son of God, who was at the right hand of the father, he began his 57:34 going down when he decided to come from heaven to earth. We know that. But his going down did not stop with that. He continued to go down even when he was on earth. And part of this going down was his decision to go down from Jerusalem to 57:53 Nazareth. Jerusalem was a exalted place both geographically and religiously. And Nazareth was a despised place, a place from which people thought nothing good can come from. So he went down to Nazareth and he 58:11 stayed there for the next 18 years and he did not even have the benefit of parents who understood him and who shared his heart and his zeal for God. They didn't understand and Jesus submitted to them to parents who did not 58:30 understand him. So this is a great challenge for us to submit to those who don't understand us. And it says here he continued in subjection to them. So after coming to Nazareth, Jesus continued in subjection. That 58:48 means he was already in subjection to them before this incident and he continued in subjection and obedience. So when people were amazed at Jesus at all his knowledge and his understanding and his answers, he did not despise his parents who did 59:08 not have any of that knowledge. And he knew much more about the Bible, about God's ways than his parents, but he did not look down on them. He did not think that because now I know so much and I have so much zeal for God's house, for 59:23 God's interests, I don't have to submit to anyone. I don't have to submit to my parents. So this is a temptation which some of us can face. Uh when people praise us for what we know about God's word, about God's ways, we may be 59:39 tempted to think that now we have to submit to God alone and we don't have to submit to anyone else. But Jesus did not think like that. He continued to submit to parents who were imperfect, who could not even understand his words. 59:55 And this submission was so precious to God. And I believe this was one of the main reasons 18 years later, God testified that Jesus was his beloved son with whom he was well pleased. And then we read yeah uh related to this verse one more 1:00:22 thing I wanted to mention. See Jesus obtained this testimony from God the father that he was well pleasing to God because of his submission. And children also can obtain such a testimony from God if they submit to their parents that way. See if you look 1:00:41 at this verse Colossians chapter 3 and verse 20. Colossians chapter 3. It says here, "Children, 1:00:59 children, be obedient to your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing to the Lord." What is well pleasing to the Lord? children being obedient to their parents in all things. So by being obedient to his imperfect 1:01:18 parents in all things, Jesus received the testimony that he was well pleasing to the father. And children are exhorted to be obedient to their parents in all things because it is well pleasing to God and they too can receive such a 1:01:33 testimony from the father. And when we look at the final verse, verse 52, Luke 2:52, and Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and men. We we read here that Jesus increased in 1:01:53 four things. First is wisdom that refers to his intellectual ability and spiritual discernment. Then then stature which refers to his physical development, favor with God with respect to his relationship with 1:02:10 the heavenly father and favor with men with respect to his relationship with people his social relationships. So he increased in spiritual, intellectual, social and physical aspects. So we can say that Jesus had all round 1:02:27 development and this allround development he obtained in a place in a despised place called Nazareth. Today uh we see many schools they advertise all round development for children. They say that if you study in 1:02:46 their school they will take care of all aspects of their development intellectual, emotional, physical, they will take care of it. But Jesus had even better allound development not by going to some fancy 1:03:03 school but being in the place which God has appointed for him. Even though it was a very despised place, we would think that Jerusalem is the place where you can obtain all round development because if you are in Jerusalem, you can 1:03:20 be exposed to the best teachers. You can learn from the best teachers. But that was not where Jesus obtained this development. I think the parents of Saul, Saul of Tarsus thought that Jerusalem was the place to get the best education, to get 1:03:37 best all round development. So they sent him there to learn from the best teachers and all the development that Saul got there only turned him into an enemy of Jesus and a persecutor of the church. So we parents we don't have to worry 1:03:55 that we we are not able to afford some fancy international school which has all these facilities where children can obtain all round development. See Jesus obtained this development by being in Nazareth 1:04:13 and it was a despised place but that was where God wanted him to be. And if we remain in the place where God wants us to be even if it is a despised place we can obtain all round development and even our children can do 1:04:30 the same. From a human point of view, Jesus grew just like any of us. Like just we grow, he also grew. Look at this verse in verse 27. Luke 2:27, it says, "He came in the spirit to the 1:04:49 temple and when the parents brought in the child Jesus." So here in verse 27, he is the child Jesus. In verse 40, it says, "The child continued to grow and become strong, increasing in wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him." 1:05:08 And in verse 43, we read that the last part, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. So child Jesus, boy Jesus, and after this there's a gap of 18 years and we don't read anything about Jesus during that time. And the next time we see 1:05:27 Jesus is when he's at the river Jordan to be baptized by John the Baptist. And this is what John the Baptist testified about him in John's gospel chapter 1 and verse 30. John 1:30. 1:05:49 This is what John the Baptist said. This is he on behalf of whom I said after me comes a man who has a higher rank than I for he existed before me. So Jesus grew just like us physically 1:06:05 from a child to a boy to a man. So he is no longer the child Jesus or the boy Jesus or even the teen Jesus. He is now a man. That is what John said about him. So when he stood to receive baptism from 1:06:24 John the Baptist, he was a man. He grew in maturity, not just physically, even in wisdom. He grew. We read that he increased in wisdom from a child to a boy to a man. And the father testified about him. Later we read in Luke 3:22. 1:06:44 We we are all familiar with this verse. The father testified, "The Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove and a voice came out from heaven. You are my beloved son. In you I am well pleased." So Jesus was the beloved son of God even 1:07:02 as a child, even as a boy. But the father waited for 30 years, waited until he became a man to testify about him publicly that he was well pleasing to him. And when the son was tested in many ways 1:07:21 and especially in the area of submission to God's appointed authorities even though they were imperfect, then the son was made perfect through the suffering of obedience. That means even when he had to deny his will, he had to suffer by denying his will. 1:07:40 Jesus obeyed not just to the heavenly father but to his earthly parents. And when Jesus did that, when he became a man, God testified about him. See, when we are born again, we are all children of God. And the Holy Spirit 1:07:55 testifies to us that we are children of God. We read about that in Romans 8:16. But we are not to remain as children. We should not be satisfied that we have a testimony that we are the children of God. We should be also eager to receive 1:08:13 the testimony that we are sons of God who are well pleasing to him. And that is what Jesus did. And to become such a son, we have to walk in the same path that Jesus walked. Jesus kept growing in wisdom, in 1:08:31 stature, in favor with God and men. And his growth in all these areas, I believe, was connected to his going down to Nazareth and continuing in submission to his parents. And the submission and obedience which Jesus showed was not a grudging 1:08:49 obedience. It was cheerful. He didn't just submit to his parents in a superior way as if he was just putting up with them or as if uh he knew that what they wanted of him. But his obedience was a real obedience. It it 1:09:07 was from the heart and he didn't obey just for the sake of telling others well I'm submitting to my parents. So it was from the heart and he obeyed them even though they did not understand him. And that was what pleased God. And when we 1:09:23 obey people who are in authority over us, even when they don't understand us, understand our point of view, then God is pleased with us. Sometimes when we are working in the church also, we may put across a point of view, but 1:09:40 they may not understand us. But because they are in authority, we have to submit to them. And sometimes even in our families, people who are closest to us may not understand us. And that may we may find that discouraging. 1:09:55 But God can use that very thing to keep us from pride and help us to be humble. So God has appointed a Nazareth for each of his children, a place where we must go down to and we should stay and we should submit and grow even if we are 1:10:14 not understood. And we must be willing to accept without complaining the very thing that we think is against our spiritual desires. And that is how we can grow in maturity. 1:10:31 And in such a place God may allow us to stay for more than one year, a few years. But as we go down and submit in that place, we will grow from children to boys and from boys to men. And then we can become sons of God with whom he 1:10:48 is pleased. But we find some resistance in us when we have to submit like that and we think it is it is going against my zeal for God. It is draining me spiritually. It is dampening my zeal for God. But that very thing God can use to 1:11:05 produce true humility and true spirituality. God uses Nazareth to bring out the best in his children. See, note that by going down to Nazareth and submitting to his parents, Jesus did not lose any zeal for God. It did not dampen his zeal for God. 1:11:25 At the age of 12, he had so much zeal for God that he stayed back in his father's house uh and did not go back with his parents. But after 18 years in Nazareth at the age of 30, when he went to the temple, his disciples saw him, the way 1:11:42 he acted, the way he behaved, chasing out the money changers. And they said uh they remembered that it was written about him, "Zeal for your house will consume me. So he had a zeal at the age of 12 but at 1:11:59 the age of 30 his zeal for God's house only increased for God's interest for his father's interests only increased. It did not become less. So by submitting to the authorities God has placed over us, we should not think that our zeal will 1:12:17 be dampened and we too can increase in zeal. And we know that Nazareth is not a place which we can boast about. We can boast about uh Jerusalem. We can boast about Bethlehem but not about Nazareth. It is 1:12:35 a despised place and people think nothing good can come out of it naturally. But God uses such places to bring out the best because in that way he alone is glorified. And one more thing we see finally is 1:12:52 that Jesus chose to be identified with Nazareth permanently. Even though Jesus was born in Bethlehem, he is not called Jesus the Bethlehemite. And even though he was he died in Jerusalem, he's not called Jesus the 1:13:10 Jerusalemite. He's called Jesus the Nazarene. And that is how we read in the acts of the apostles the they refer to him Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus the Nazarene. Many years later when Jesus uh met Saul on 1:13:27 the road to Damascus, Saul asked him, "Lord, who are you?" And the Lord replied, "I am Jesus the Nazarene." And Jesus chose to be identified with that place because that is where he grew from child to a boy, from a boy to a 1:13:47 man. And it was in that place he was perfected. It was in that place he obtained the testimony that he was well pleasing to the father. So may the Lord help us all to go down to the Nazareth which he has appointed for us. And by going down to 1:14:06 that Nazareth and submitting to whatever authorities that God has placed us over there, placed over us there, we can also become like Jesus and obtain the testimony that we are well pleasing to him. May the Lord help us. 1:15:14 So let's sing the song. Oh Jesus Christ, grow thou in me and all things else proceed. [music] Oh Jesus [singing] Christ, draw [music] thou in me and 1:15:32 [singing] all things else receive. [music] My heart be [singing] daily [music] from sin be daily free [singing] each day. Let [music] thy supporting 1:15:53 [singing] mine. My weakness still [music] embrace my darkness vanish [singing and music] in thy light. Thy life, my death [singing] their face. [music] In thy bright [singing] beings which on 1:16:16 me forfeit [music] every evil [singing] thought that I am nothing. Thou art all I [singing] would be [music] daily. >> More of thy [singing and music] glory. 1:16:38 Let me see thou holy, [singing] wise, [music] and true. I would thy [singing] livinging image [music] be in joy and sorrow to each 1:16:56 day. Each [singing and music] day let thy supporting might my weakness [music] still [singing] embrace my darkness [music] vanish in thy light. 1:17:14 Thy life my death [singing] their face. Fill me [singing and music] with gladness from above. for me [music] by strength divide. Lord, let [singing] the [music] glow of 1:17:34 thy great love through all [singing] my being [music] shine. Make this for self. Make this [singing] for self growless and less [music] be thou my life [singing] and aim. 1:17:53 Oh, make me daily through thy [music] grace for me to bear [singing] thy name. Each [music] day let thy supporting mind, my weakness still [singing and music] 1:18:12 embrace my darkness vanish in. [music and singing] Thy life, thy life, my death face. [music] Praise the Lord for his word. 1:18:50 I believe [clears throat] um we got little familiar with Nazareth [clears throat] maybe new revelation or new understanding. What has driven us? [clears throat] What has driven us to come to this place 1:19:12 today? What is driving us? It's very important that Nazareth where Jesus lived drove him. [clears throat] Maybe I don't want to see it as a place 1:19:29 uh circumstances, situations, god-given situations that drove Jesus you all we all went through last one week as there [clears throat] 1:19:51 situations, circumstances which God placed you in has made you weak has made us weak and uncomfortable. um maybe cry to God 1:20:12 made us to [clears throat] become more hungry as that driving us to Jerusalem to seek after God. Maybe I would like to read a verse in Acts chapter [clears throat] chapter 17 1:20:31 which always I come back to this verse where Paul [clears throat] was a man with lot of hunger for God. He was in Athens. He saw all the religious things which 1:20:50 are happening. He just I would like to read a verse [clears throat] here. Verse 26. He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on the face of the earth 1:21:06 having deterine determined their appointed times and boundaries of their habitation. See God he's saying God has determined. God from heaven determined place to be born and brought up for 1:21:27 Jesus. And the more important thing is Jesus accepted it as it is. You you must be familiar. Isaiah [clears throat] 53:10 says he was God 1:21:43 was pleased to crush Jesus. Crush him. It's like this. Oh, uh, this clay is more softer. I would like to soften it more. You know, like a potter takes the clay. 1:22:03 Oh, he's so happy about this clay. This all the other lot of stones and all and bit hard. No, he takes um good part of clay and takes it. Yeah. I I can mold 1:22:20 more so that I can get a better part without any wrinkle or any stones on it. So soft I will make a best part out of it. That's how I see it here. 1:22:37 Have we come to this place to accept appointed times and boundaries of their habitation? Where I have to live, under whom I have to live, imperfect parents, imperfect situation, imperfect husband, imperfect wife, 1:22:56 imperfect working place, imperfect church, imperfect elders. Am I getting ground grinded grinded there? What is the purpose? The purpose is verse 27. 1:23:13 That they would seek God. If perhaps they might grow for him and find him. Brothers and sisters, this is a challenge for us. As our Nazareth has grinded us, God's will and God's 1:23:30 boundaries. Oh, I have this much income, God-given income. I'm finding it difficult. Oh, that brother does so and so does. So 1:23:44 shall I go and do that in more in um more increase or get more money and I make my ways to do this and that and go outside the boundary 1:24:02 or oh it's difficult here in this situation boundary I will stay here and die to my will and Find God. Find God in the God-given habitation, habitation, and boundaries. 1:24:22 Have we been more weakened through the week to come and seek God? I don't want to say, "Oh, only come to church on Sunday." No. Every day, what is driving us to seek God? That's why brothers and sisters, it's tr it's very important 1:24:39 that we are truly born again. We are truly born again. If we are not truly born again, we will not be able to see Jesus and the purposes of God and we will not be able to remain in our 1:24:55 boundaries or accept the imperfect circumstances to be crushed. We we will not. That's why means in the world the people don't want that and they have despire means they have rejected God and gone after their own ways 1:25:15 and way of destruction but we have accepted and recognized Jesus Jesus you went the right way would like to read that it's in John chapter 14 14:e 6 Jesus clearly said 1:25:35 that I am the way and the truth and the life. No one can come, no one comes to the father but through me. That is through Jesus. The path of God's boundaries and 1:25:54 Nazareth and circumstances, situations like Jesus accepted it. He he made a way for us. But if we are not um born again or our eyes are open, one Corinthians 2:15 says, "He who is 1:26:14 spiritually appraises all things yet he himself is appraised." Oh, sorry, let me go to another verse. Uh verse 1 Corinthians 2:14 I wanted to see. But a natural man does not accept the things of the spirit of God is a natural man. 1:26:33 Are we all natural men and women here? No. We claim to be born again and we we want to become like Jesus. Are we really aiming to become like Jesus? That's the that's the ultimate question. If I'm 1:26:53 born again, yes, I want to be like Jesus. I want to go down as Jesus. I want to accept as Jesus. I want to pursue or value of Jesus. But uh here it's he is saying Paul is saying that for they are foolishness. 1:27:11 Let me read it again. A natural man does not accept the things of the spirit of God for they are foolishness to him. It can be foolishness to us. and uh he cannot understand them because they are spiritually appraised. It's something different. 1:27:31 I I I find it difficult brother. I don't like this brother. I come here to get blessings from God and uh uh I want this, I want that. I don't want inconvenience. I don't want to be uh under this kind of situations. No, tell me something I can 1:27:50 get out of it. How can I make my life comfort comfortable? Yeah, let me read a verse Isaiah 53. It's about Jesus. It is saying who has believed our message. That's that's how Isaiah begins. And whom has arm of the 1:28:09 Lord has been revealed. But he grew up Jesus grew up before the father like a tender chute. That's what we heard today. He grew up. He accepted it. God-given circumstances, situations, 1:28:28 and that weakened him more. That made him more weak. So every time he prayed with loud cryings and tears. He learned obedience through the things it he suffered. Hebrews 5:7 and 8. He 1:28:47 had to suffer. He he couldn't go out of his boundaries. That's why that hunger grew within him. Are you accepting your situation, circumstances, imperfections around you? And like Jesus said, Jesus learned, we 1:29:06 heard from brother Paul. He he he learned and then he spoke. What did he speak? Blessed are the poor in spirit. Theirs says the kingdom of God. He he spoke out of his own life. If you are really hungry for God and poor in spirit, you're crying out to 1:29:25 God, your life pattern is a life of a weakness and you depend more on God, then theirs is the kingdom of God. You will receive kingdom of God. That means you'll receive a relationship with God. Brothers and sisters, the reality is 1:29:41 that I can be spiritual as much as I desire to be. I can find God. We can find God as much we desire to be. If we see, oh, brother Zach, oh, brother Zach, what did brother Zach do? He was man like us. 1:30:01 He was also, he was, he didn't come from heaven. But what made him to be drawn close to God? how God became very close to him. Then he set his eyes on Jesus. But here it says verse two g about Jesus 1:30:19 uh unlike a root out of parched ground. He has no stately form or majesty. He is not attractive. I had to tell some time back recently. Do you think what kind of Jesus your your mind is set on? 1:30:37 um he didn't have any status. He was despised that we should look upon him. No, there's no attraction. And it says no appearance that we should be attracted to him. Verse three, he was despised and forsaken by men. A man of 1:30:54 sorrows and acquainted with grief and like one from whom men hid their hide their face. He was despised and we did not esteem him. That is the time when he lived. But are we here to esteem him? 1:31:13 Are we have we recognize this Jesus or we are more occupied with h no brother somebody is not treating well. I'll I'll go to some other place and I I I find difficult. I'm human. 1:31:30 See that's why Peter Peter went to Jesus and said Jesus no no this is not the way why do you take trouble no I don't like you to suffer you know what was Jesus reply Jesus reply was get behind me Satan for you are not setting your mind 1:31:49 on God's interests but man's see you know different level see man's interest is one level and God's interest is another devil. If I am truly born again, I am moved from man's interest to God's interest. 1:32:08 Otherwise, I am not born again because my eyes are not opened. But Jesus' eyes were very clearly open. He was able to recognize what is man's level or man's interest. Uh I don't set my mind on that. I want 1:32:25 to set my mind on God's interests. So I remain in the boundary. I remain in Nazareth. I don't mind um myself to be recognized as Nazarene. I I'm okay. I'm okay. If somebody misunderstands me, I'm okay. Has our 1:32:45 circumstances, situations made us to distance or shaken. That shaking is showing me or showing us that move toward God. seek God and find him. Come to a stability. Like we heard that Jesus was not trying to just 1:33:03 explain or justify. Jesus once said those who justify themselves, it's abominable. Abominable in the sight of God. Why? Because you're just trying to please people, trying make them understand you. Why? Why they have to understand you? It's okay. It's 1:33:22 okay. People don't understand. Fine. I have set my eyes on Jesus. I would like to read a was [clears throat] in Romans chapter 8. Well-known verse. Yeah. W chapter 8 verse 28. We know that 1:33:41 God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose. What is good? called according to his purpose is good. Not that I like this, I 1:33:59 don't like this, I I don't I don't want to be treated like this, I don't want to be mentioned like no, not those things. Lord, father, see for Jesus, it's very clear. Jesus, father, tell me what I should be doing. I I'll just do that. 1:34:16 People misunderstand, people understand, don't understand. I'm not here to explain to anyone. I want to set my eyes on you and live before you. That's that's how brothers and sisters, that's what he learned. What we heard from age 1:34:33 12 to 30 18 years. He he he set his eyes. That's the zeal he grew in. Like when we entered the temple, he saw that it's all one. It's all done for man, man's interest. Now you're so grieved. 1:34:51 You have made my father's house into robbers's den. And here he was called according to uh we are called who are called according to his purpose. What is his purpose? For those whom we forneew he also 1:35:11 predestained to become conformed to the image of his son so that we would be the firstborn. uh he would be the firstborn among many brethren you he he is my elder brother he's firstborn he's I am just uh here to 1:35:28 set my eyes on Jesus and live for him that's it that's the beauty of this gospel brothers and sisters we we have recognized people are living for self sin and the world lord I don't want that I want to 1:35:46 set my eyes and priorities is what do most of the people do you think people understand? People may not understand. Romans 8:5 I would like to end with this 8:5 for those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of 1:36:02 the flesh. That is very clear. But those who are according to the spirit, those who are born of the spirit, they put their mind on the things of the spirit. For the mindset on the flesh is 1:36:18 death, but the mindset on the spirit is life and peace. Because the mindset on the flesh is hostile toward God, for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so. 1:36:36 And those who are in the flesh cannot please God. So let's fix our eyes on Jesus. This Jesus whom Paul proclaimed, Peter proclaimed, John proclaimed, not 1:36:55 some other Jesus. Um, who is a genie according to the world? No, he's not genie. He's a he's my brother, elder brother is a firstborn. And I'm going to become like that. Those who have this mind to follow 1:37:13 Jesus then they will be children of God and also they will be the church a body of Christ. That's the reason we come here come together here to encourage one another. That's the reason we fellowship. I would love to meet a 1:37:30 brother who has set his eyes on Jesus and following. I would like to sit at his feet and want to learn whether he's a he's 10 years younger, 20 years younger than me. That's fine. I would like to see how this he is growing like 1:37:47 a tender shoot before the father eye before the father. Father's eye and I want to sit and see that. Wow, wonderful. That that should be our attraction. Brothers and sisters, may the Lord help us. Let's bow our heads and pray. 1:38:06 Father give us Father give us grace to [clears throat] see more clearly of Jesus. Jesus who was despised went through so many things but he was not shaken by any circumstances. Any could despise him, misunderstand 1:38:26 him, call him with any names. He was not shaken. But Lord, we are shaken by many, many circumstances. Lord, we want to be introduced to Jesus of the Bible. Jesus our Lord. Lord, we want to learn from you. That we 1:38:46 will we want to be unshaken, unshakable in our life no matter what happens. Please help us. It's not possible, Lord Jesus, without being filled with the Holy Spirit. You had the Holy Spirit dwelling in you. 1:39:03 That's the reason you were not shaken by anything. You were able to set your eyes on God's interest and remain in the boundaries of God. But Lord, we are shaken. We come to you. We are hungry. We are thirsty. We are weak. Teach us to 1:39:22 number our days and apply the heart of wisdom. Give us grace. We ask you, Father, in Jesus name. Amen. I mean the meeting is over. Announcements please. Presenting 1:39:50 the book of this month. Here O my sons by brother Zach Punan. Fathers are told to bring up their children in the [music] instruction of the Lord. This book contains extracts from emails 1:40:09 that brother Zach wrote to his four sons when they were single and away from home. They were studying in colleges at first and then working. They were in their late teens and in their 20s at that time. 1:40:28 This book mostly consists [music] of instruction from the word of God to lead young people to be devoted to the [music] Lord Jesus. This will help you to be established [music] from a young age in the truths 1:40:44 of God's word and also help you to be able to share God's truth accurately with others. 90% [music] of what is written in this book is equally applicable to young girls [music] as well. 1:41:02 They too can read this book. Here are [music] the testimonies of those who have originally benefited from the emails and they share about how they have been blessed and were able to receive the right guidance from them. 1:41:24 Dear friends and especially dear young people, I want to tell you about one of the best gifts [music] that my father has given me. That is this book here. Oh my sons. Now, it wasn't given to me in the form of a book. I received it in the 1:41:39 form of emails that he wrote to me faithfully over many years as I was a [music] young boy growing into a young man living far away from home on the other side of the world. And this book contains [music] encouragement and warnings and 1:41:55 challenges that will help you [music] navigate through life. I just want to mention two things that you read in this book and you'll find them on the first page of the book and on the last page of the book. The first is that God has a 1:42:10 plan for your life. So don't look at the ups and especially not the downs. Don't look at your circumstances, the opportunities you may or may not have or any of those things, but look to God who is committed to finishing [music] his 1:42:26 plan for your life. And if you ask him and you seek him daily and seek to live [music] in purity and humility and love every day of your life by his grace, [music] he will finish it in your life. And he proved that he will finish the 1:42:43 plan that he can finish his plan for any human being when he finished it in Jesus Christ [music] who suffered more than any of us has ever suffered. And when he finished it in Jesus [music] Christ, he was showing us that he can finish it for us as well. 1:43:00 And on the last page of the book, you'll read that what God did for Jesus, [music] he will do for you. He will do for us. I pray that this book will be [music] an encouragement to you as it has been for me. Amen. >> We pray that this book will be a 1:43:15 blessing to all young people who read it. You can read this book free online at cfcindia.com/books/hero. for my sons. [music]
